Angels Angle for Consistency

The St. Joe’s 2017 Softball team has had some very impressive wins this season. The team put up a significant 13 runs in a 13-3 domination of Nerinx Hall on August 29, tallied a win over Westminster 8-3 on August 31, and handed Ladue an 11-6 loss on September 5.  As Taylor Adler puts it, “When this team gets rolling, we are hard to stop.”

The statistics support Adler’s assessment. Against Nerinx Hall, Anne Basile went 3-for-4 with 4 runs batted in (RBI’s), Caroline Cutler was 2-for-4 with 2 RBI’s, and Mary Evans was 2-for-3 with 2 RBI’s. They were not alone. The team had 12 hits in 24 at bats, for a .500 batting average. The Markers were off, and completely shut down in a dominating pitching performance by Caroline Cutler, who tossed a 5 inning, 3 hit, 2 earned run game with 7 strikeouts.

The team also had stellar statistics in the Westminster and Ladue games. Against Westminster, the Angels scored 8 runs on 7 hits, while drawing 7 walks. Cutler had another strong outing, taming the Wildcats by going 7 innings while giving up 3 runs and only 2 walks. In the Ladue game, the Angels went 12-for-35 with 16 walks. Pitcher Caroline Cutler set the table again, racking up 7 innings, while giving up only 3 earned runs and ramming Ladue with 16 strikeouts. Alas, the Angels’ team managers were not able to bottle that potent mix of offensive lightning and punch-out pitching.

Softball, experts say, is a game of inches. Despite the impressive wins, the Angels have also had some setbacks. After the Ladue win, the bats went silent, the pitching wavered, and the team lost four straight games. In discussing the team, Coach Cummings said, “The Win/lost record is not what we would want it to be, but we have played a tough schedule. From game one to present, we have definitely competed this season to the best of our abilities. We have gotten better every game, and that’s what you want.”

If the Angels are at their best, they are peaking at just the right time. Coach Cummings may be onto something. After 12 games, a total of six Angels are now batting .333 or better, led by Amber Kopf and Anne Basile, both hitting an eye-popping .464. Those numbers will give opposing pitchers some sleepless nights. Morgan Wilson summed up the situation this way: “We are preparing for districts. We are definitely playing better as a team and improving our skills.” Heading into the Parkway North game, the Angels had 3 regular season games left. After that, the post-season begins.

These Angels embrace the challenge. The proof? Look no further than Morgan Wilson, who said, “I think my favorite game so far was against Lafayette.  Lafayette is a good team, and we hung with them. It was a great game!” She was describing St. Joe’s 6-5 loss to Lafayette on September 1. When your team loves to compete so much that they can appreciate a good game despite a close loss, good things will follow. All the Angels need now is the consistency that served them so well in their wins.